Monday, December 28, 2009

A Quick Trip to Charleston

Allison, visiting for the holidays said she wanted to see the real south. So Melanie and I took her to Charleston. We left out Saturday afternoon, got a hotel room, visited the Battery Park at night and got some dinner at Vickery's. That place has some great food. I had a Cuban Classic with ham, pork and Swiss cheese. It was to die for. The next morning we toured the downtown area again and after that got an otherworldly lunch at Hominy Grill. I've never had a better gravy and biscuit dish. For some reason a couple of parties slid in before us that had put their name is after us but after we started eating all was forgiven. After lunch we headed out to Isle of Palms to see the ocean. Then we drove home.

I love Charleston. It is chock full of old buildings and history. You can walk around the Battery Park area for hours and take in the sites. You can gaze across the harbor and see Fort Sumter. You can look up at the top of an old mansion and see the railing on the roof someone leaned on and observed the bombardment of Fort Sumter. It's awe inspiring to be able to point at that small island and say, "The Civil War started right there."

It's also very easy to get around in Charleston. It's laid out in a grid and it's a peninsula about one mile wide. It's impossible to get lost (which I proved after dinner on Saturday night when I got turned around trying to get back to the car). It's also very pedestrian friendly. The streets are narrow and the speed limit is only 25 mph and cars will stop for you when you are crossing the street. There are also sidewalks everywhere and the terrain is flat.

I took a few photos.

An old mansion at the Battery Park

My day is always complete if I can see a pelican or two

There are are so many beautiful old houses. You could take pictures here all day

These homes are facing east over the Cooper River

We found this beautiful alley called Longitude Ln.

The Young-Johnson House. Circa 1770. I love that this camera has a 28mm lens I can use for tight shots of architecture.